Qualcomm Says It Welcomes Chance To Respond to EC Antitrust Allegations

Qualcomm received “courtesy copies” of two Statements of Objections from the European Commission “relating to separate matters involving Qualcomm’s chipset business,” the company said Tuesday. It emphasized that the statements aren't “a determination of the final outcome of the investigation,” but give Qualcomm up to four months to respond to the preliminary allegations. Qualcomm has been cooperating with the EC “since the outset of these matters,” and it welcomes “the chance to formally respond,” it said. “We look forward to demonstrating that competition in the sale of wireless chips has been and remains strong and dynamic, and that Qualcomm’s sales practices have always complied with European competition law.” The EC informed Qualcomm “of its preliminary conclusions that the company may have illegally paid a major customer for exclusively using its chipsets and sold chipsets below cost with the aim of forcing a competitor,” Icera, “out of the market," in “potential breach” of antitrust rules, the commission said Tuesday in a news release. Under those rules, “dominant companies have a responsibility not to abuse their powerful market position by restricting competition,” it said.